Images of the Past, Visions of the Future, part 1
by chocolatequeen
Summary: A Season of Darkness spans a time from directly before Anakin's fall to right after the twins were born.
1. Prologue

Images of the Past, Visions of the Future  
  
By Chocolatequeen, which is not an alias for George Lucas, so surprise! I don't own any of this! Well, except for the specific story idea.  
  
AN: I know the title sounds awfully similar to Zahn's Hand of Thrawn duology, but believe me, that's purely coincidence. The first half comes from Leia's comment that her memories of her mother are "just images really, feelings." The second. well, that's straight from my imagination to your computer screen.  
  
AN 2: I had to quote a section of the ROTJ dialogue in this part to make it work. I'd love to put it in italics, but FF.net doesn't like me so that doesn't seem possible. If someone would like to email me and tell me how, I'll go back and fix it. For now, just know that if the lines sound like they're straight out of the movie, they are.  
  
Single quotes '' are thoughts, double quotes "" are speech.  
  
Prologue-Just Images  
  
Luke watched the suns set over the dunes, lost in thought. 'My father. all my life I've wanted to know who my father is, and now that I do, I wish I could erase that knowledge. Sometimes ignorance is bliss.' It had been six months since his duel with Vader, yet he still struggled to wrap his mind around this new understanding, this knowing where he came from. 'I wish I knew more about him, this evil that he is now can't be the whole story. If it is. if it is, then somehow, that same evil must be in myself, and I can't believe that.'  
  
Shaking his head against such thoughts, he returned to Ben's house, the twilight behind him creating an amber glow around his silhouette. "I don't have time to think about this," he muttered as he fingered the hilt of his newly created lightsaber. Pressing the switch, he examined the green blade. Green, not blue as his father's had been. or red, as Vader's was. There it was again, the realization of his true identity taunting him, lurking like a shadow over his future. A cold gust of wind blew through the hut, bringing with it the voice of a decrepit, wizened man. "This is your destiny, Skywalker," the wind seemed to say. "You are your father's son, and you, like him, will turn. You too will betray your friends and loved ones."  
  
'I will not think like this,' Luke told himself. 'Despair can lead only to the Dark Side. I will not be forced into a destiny not of my own making. I choose to hold true to what I have been taught.' Shoving all thoughts of his past out of his mind, Luke turned to Artoo Deeto. "Time to record the message, Artoo," he said. The little droid beeped in agreement and Luke began. "Greetings, Exalted One. I am Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight and friend of Captain Solo."  
  
Later, on the Endor moon  
  
Quietly, Luke slipped away from the party. It was time to face his destiny, and he knew it. He just hoped that he could leave without any of his friends noticing, but even as he walked across the bridge he knew he had not been successful.  
  
"Luke, what's wrong?" Leia asked from behind him.  
  
Sitting down on the railing of the bridge, he reached out with the Force. Was this the time to tell her? Should Leia know about her past before he committed her to a future not of her choosing? Finding his answer, he spoke. "Do you remember your mother, your real mother?"  
  
Leia sat down beside him, a little surprised at the question. "Just a little," she answered. "She died when I was very young." To her surprise, the Jedi before her seemed to eat up that answer, eagerly waiting for more.  
  
"What do you remember?"  
  
A feeling of unease lingered at the edge of her consciousness. This line of questioning was dangerous somehow, yet she couldn't see how. Trying to evade the question, she shrugged. "Just images really, feelings."  
  
"Tell me," he insisted.  
  
Caught off guard by the tenacity of his queries, she looked down, taking a moment to collect her thoughts before speaking. "She was very beautiful," she said almost haltingly, "kind, but. sad." Focusing her gaze on Luke, she asked a question now. "Why are you asking me this?"  
  
As if unable to handle the scrutiny of her gaze, Luke looked down at the bridge. "I have no memory of my mother. I never knew her," he replied quietly. He had the answer he had been looking for-his mother had been a good woman, she had loved her children-but the realization that his sister had memories he couldn't share hurt. He was almost jealous of those few memories she did have, yet he wouldn't begrudge her them. 'Just images really, feelings," he repeated to himself as he shared the truth of their relationship. 'But what if I want more.' 


	2. The Twilight Hour

Images of the Past, Visions of the Future: A Season of Darkness  
  
Part 1-The Twilight Hour  
  
By Chocolatequeen  
  
I don't own Star Wars or any of the characters. at least I don't think I included any OC. um, nope.  
  
AN: I'm trying to get FF.net to do the italics/bold thing, but it must be me, seriously. I save it as an html file instead of .doc, and it still doesn't do it. So. I am currently at a loss, until FF.net decides there's no reason to hold the italics/bolds hostage. My apologies.  
  
AN 2: And yeah, I kinda created the proverb/prophecy thing there, if you couldn't tell. I figured "Shoot, they haven't told us exactly what the prophecy says, I can make up what I want and add it to my story." Literary privilege and all that.  
  
IMPORTANT AN!!! I'm changing the format of this story somewhat. Instead of being one story, it's going to be a series. That way I can break my chapters down better and such. Part 1 is "A Season of Darkness."  
  
"To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven." Ecclesiastes 3:1  
  
"In the Force, there will be seasons of Light and Darkness, until the One comes who will bring balance to the Force." Jedi Prophecy  
  
"Padmé, have you heard the news?" Anakin asked excitedly as he rushed into their home on Naboo.  
  
"What news Ani?" his wife asked curiously.  
  
"Palpatine has declared himself Emperor!"  
  
Padmé sank down into an armchair. "So it's begun then," she murmured more to herself than to her husband. "When did this happen?" she asked, collecting her thoughts.  
  
"Just yesterday. Finally, the galaxy will know peace again," Anakin responded.  
  
Padmé looked at him disbelievingly. "Are you serious Anakin? Do you realize what this means? We are living in a dictatorship-the one thing I fought so hard to prevent has happened."  
  
"What are you talking about?" he asked, throwing his hands up in the air.  
  
"Do you remember when we were in the lake country before we were married, and you said that if people couldn't agree on what was right then someone ought to tell them what to think? You were just kidding, but what do you think is going to happen as the Emperor takes control of the galaxy? Anyone who disagrees with him will find life very hard indeed."  
  
Anakin turned to look out the window. Her words echoed in his mind, was it possible he was missing something? Finally he said, "It won't be like that Padmé, he's just going to sit the warring factions down and settle this once and for all. The civil war will be over and then the Emperor will rule in conjunction with the Senate."  
  
Padmé shook her head in exasperation. "It's not that easy Anakin. Power, once tasted, is addictive. He will not want to loosen the reins of his control once he has the galaxy at his beck and call. As for the war. I fear we are in for a long period of civil war. An empire is as prone to them as a republic."  
  
Anakin's persuasiveness turned to anger as he swung back around to face her. "You might want to watch what you say, Padmé. Words like that could mark you as a dissident, a dangerous category to fall in during times like these." His voice was cold, Padme barely recognized it as his.  
  
"You see Anakin, that's what I'm talking about. I shouldn't have to live in fear for stating my thoughts, no one should. We should all be free to say exactly what we're feeling."  
  
"I wouldn't press your luck, wife," Anakin said with a sneer. "You might find it running out someday. In the future you would be wise to keep such thoughts from me especially."  
  
Padmé stared at her husband, bewildered. "What are you saying Anakin? You're frightening me."  
  
"I'm saying that Emperor Palpatine has asked me to be his advisor, and I've accepted. I'm taking the next transport to Coruscant. I was going to ask you to come with me but."  
  
"I will never support a government which overthrows democracy," Padmé replied automatically.  
  
"I rather suspected as much." Husband and wife looked at each for a long moment, taking the time to memorize features. They had been separated often in the three years of their marriage, and this parting custom kept them going till the next time they could be together. This time however Anakin's gaze hardened after a moment. "I will not inform the Emperor of your thoughts this time because you are my wife and I love you. I make no promises for the next time we meet. If you cannot see fit to support the empire I will have no choice but to turn you in."  
  
Shocked and hurt, Padmé turned away from her husband. "Then perhaps it would be best if you did not come back," she said softly.  
  
Anakin stared at his wife's back for a moment before leaving the house, slamming the door behind him.  
  
Obi-Wan walked down the streets of Theed, one goal in mind. As he neared his destination, he saw a familiar face walking toward him, a dark scowl on his face. "Anakin!" he called out, but the man did not respond. Shaking his head in confusion, he continued on to the house his former padawan shared with his wife.  
  
When his light knock got no response, he reached out with the force-Padmé was home, but she wasn't answering. He debated with himself for a moment, but when he sensed the pain his friend was in, the debate was over. Opening the door, he quietly stepped inside.  
  
"Padmé?"  
  
"Over here Obi-Wan," she replied dully.  
  
"Was that."  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Have you."  
  
"I know."  
  
The short, monotone answers he received bothered Obi-Wan more than if she had been fiery, making sweeping judgments against the new government. That would have been in character, this quietness was not. "Padmé. What's wrong?" he asked finally.  
  
Slowly, with every muscle in her body tensed, she turned to face him. "What's wrong?" she asked softly, with more venom then he had ever heard from her. "My husband just left me for that. that. tyrant, and you ask me what's wrong? I'll tell you what's wrong Obi-Wan! The whole universe has been turned upside down! Evil people are winning and they're taking good people with them! Why couldn't he have chosen someone who was already twisted instead of corrupting my husband, my Ani to his will? It's not fair!" she sobbed, not noticing that she was now being held in the Jedi's strong embrace.  
  
Obi-Wan held the former senator while she cried, his mind racing. This could be bad, very bad indeed if his senses were right. When Padmé's tears had died down a little, he cautiously ventured to ask a question. "He's going to Coruscant?"  
  
"To be the Emperor's advisor."  
  
The anger in her voice was gone, leaving on a tired sorrow that made Obi- Wan's heart ache. "Padmé, I'm sure he'll be back soon. He never could stand to be away from you for too long." Deep inside he knew this was not the issue however, and her next words confirmed it.  
  
Slowly, Padme turned and stepped through the back door onto the patio. She stared out at the garden for a moment; the garden Anakin had tilled for her, all the while teasing her about senators getting their hands dirty. Where had that man been this afternoon? "I don't want him to come back, Obi- Wan," she said finally. "He's not the man I married anymore. he's changed somehow. Today he was so angry with me, but not in a violent way-it was more of a cold, calculating anger. I don't understand what's happened to him."  
  
Obi-Wan's heart sank. His senses were right indeed. "He's falling to the Dark Side, Padmé," he replied quietly. He sensed her initial recoil at the thought and continued. "You know it is true. Think of the way he is letting his anger control his actions. He is no longer allowing the Force to control his emotions."  
  
Padmé nodded reluctantly as she brushed her fingers against the petals of a delicate flower. "I know Obi-Wan, I suppose I've known for a while now, I just didn't want to admit that I was losing my Ani."  
  
As her thoughts turned to her husband, Obi-Wan sensed a ripple in her emotions. It was too small to identify, but it was there nonetheless. "There's more, isn't there Padmé?" he asked quietly.  
  
This time the ripple was larger, more tangible. "I don't know what you mean," she replied unconvincingly as she subconsciously gripped the stem of the flower, pulling it free from the bush.  
  
"Padmé."  
  
She sighed in defeat and glared at him. "I don't know why I try to keep anything from you Jedi anyway, you always find out somehow."  
  
"I was not prying Senator," he said formally, hurt that she would think that of him.  
  
Her expression was instantly remorseful. "Oh Obi-Wan, I know you wouldn't do that. You are a good friend, better than I deserve sometimes. I guess I'm not doing very well at controlling my emotions right now. You were right, there is something else, but I don't know how to tell you," she finally said helplessly.  
  
Kenobi gazed at her uncertainly. "Would you trust me to find it for myself?" he finally asked.  
  
Startled, Padmé looked up at her friend. He could feel her instant negative reaction gradually fade as she considered his offer. "I trust you to look no farther than you are welcome," she finally answered.  
  
Closing his eyes, Obi-Wan opened himself up to the Force and prepared to gently probe her mind. But before he even got that far, he was aware of two previously unknown presences in the Force. "Twins," he gasped as his eyes flew open.  
  
"Twins?" Padmé echoed, equally surprised, the flower slipping through her fingers to land unheeded on the patio.  
  
"You did not know?"  
  
"Only that I was pregnant but. my word, twins!" Lost for words, she lowered herself onto the garden bench. "What will Anakin think of that?" she whispered to herself.  
  
Her companion heard however. "He must not know," he told her with a grave expression on his face.  
  
Padmé focused her gaze on his face, slightly angered by this decree. "And why not? He's their father, he has a right-"  
  
Obi-Wan interrupted her, speaking firmly as one who expects to be obeyed. "Because we don't know where his loyalties lie. If he turns fully to the Dark Side, the children-your children-would be in danger."  
  
"From their own father?" she countered, still not convinced.  
  
"From their own father," he confirmed. "The Dark Side in him would not allow them to grow to the Light side of the Force. He would want to twist them to the evil that is creeping into his own heart. Do you want that for your children Padmé?"  
  
Padmé was a senator and a skilled debater, but part of being good was knowing when you had lost. "No. No, I would not want that Obi-Wan," she whispered, defeated. With a sense of growing dread, she knew the galaxy would never be the way it had been before. 


End file.
